Counterfeit Foods

News and information about counterfeit food products and the sale of mislabeled foods. The data about various forms of food fraud and substandard foods are collected from public health officials, criminal justice reports and other public information sources.

In the first six months of 2013, authorities in Yemen seized and destroyed over 57 tons of counterfeit and expired foods, counterfeit cosmetics and counterfeit drugs. 581 cases of counterfeiting have been identified by law enforcement, with 522 cases being sent to the Prosecutors office.

Amongst the actions taken by officials were seizing 50,000 packs of chewing gum and shutting down 8 ice cream factories that were shut down due to lack safety standards and substandard ingredients.

In 2012, over 80 tons of counterfeit goods was seized and destroyed in Yemen.

Illegal honey factories in Bosnia and Herzegovina produce up to 1,000 tonnes of fake honey each year. The counterfeiters sell the counterfeit honey to producers for $6.50 (€5) per kilogram, according to the president of the Beekeepers Association.

During a three month period in 2013, Chinese police arrested 904 people for “meat-related offenses . The individuals were arrested for passing of counterfeit meats as legitimate meat. One gang that was arrested make over $1 Million selling rat, fox and mink meat as mutton.

Between January and May 2013, authorities in China seized 20,000 tonnes of illegal and counterfeit foods and investigated 382 cases of meat-related crimes. Most of the cases involved the sale of toxic, diseased and counterfeit meats.

In 2010, up to $1.4 Billion (1.1 Billion Euros) worth of counterfeit foods were sold in Italy, according to a think-tank based in the country. Counterfeited items included fake Parmesan cheese and spaghetti.

The total counterfeit goods market in Italy was worth $9 Billion in 2010, causing a loss of $2.2 Billion (1.7 Billion Euros) in tax revenue.

According to a study by the Anti-Counterfeiting and Product Protection Program at Michigan State University, the following food items were found to have been counterfeited.

The study analyzed its product database of counterfeit items, and found that 16 percent of counterfeit foods involved olive oil, 14 percent involved watered down milk, 7 percent was counterfeit honey, and 2 to 4 percent of the counterfeit items were fruit juices.

Due to the role of organized crime in food production in Italy, a report has found that 80 percent of the olive oil produced in Italy and stamped with a “Made in Italy” logo was made with cheaper, lower quality oils from other countries.

Over the course of a one week joint operation conducted by Interpol-Europol, authorities seized the following substandard and counterfeit food items:

Over 13,000 bottles of substandard olive oil

Around 77,000 kilograms of counterfeit cheese

5 tons of substandard fish and seafood

Over 12,000 bottles of substandard wine

30 tons of counterfeit tomato sauce

Nearly 30,000 counterfeit candy bars

The ten countries that participated in the counterfeit food operation and where the seizures took place were Bulgaria, Denmark, France, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Romania, Spain, Turkey and the United Kingdom.